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poor

The rising tide of food theft in Northampton an ocean that is on the rise across this whole country, is something our leaders should be completely ashamed of and if they were acting for the benefit of the poor and needy, no doubt they would be.

The Chronicle and Echo (Northampton Local Paper) publishes the details of the court, in an effort to name and shame criminals, to bring some form of justice or maybe because we all just missed the good old fashion medieval stocks.

So I was surprised, saddened and shocked to see the developments of our times, a man fined £70 for stealing MILK and CEREAL.

If someone, a HUMAN BEING gets to the point that they are forced to steal to eat, the response of any civilised society and any decent human being would be to tackle the problems causing it in the first place, hunger, poverty and of course politicians.

Our response, and this tells any watching alien civilisation just how doomed we are, our response is to fine them and give them a criminal record. Would our government, our high towered overlords prefer that these people just starve to death or lie down and die?

This is appalling and disgusting and I have read similar reports across the whole country. We are criminalising the poor and those suffering the effects of poverty, while the causes are left to fester like a cancer at the centre of our society and ultimately while those responsible for that environment live in luxury, this is a gross injustice and one that should make you feel angry.

The one saving grace and I doubt something you will see reported in the Chron (Chronicle and Echo) was the response by the people of Northampton and beyond. On the same day this was reported Bianca Todd from CCY (Community Court Yard) put a shout out on Facebook to raise money to not only pay off the court fine but provide food for the individual, which was met with great kindness and empathy.

What logic leads our law makers to the conclusion that those struggling to survive and those struggling to make ends meet, even those that are homeless should be fined for acts which take place directly because of that poverty. If you have no money, how can you pay a fine? If you cannot afford basic essentials and basic human needs, then how is a fine going to help that situation?

We live in a society where the poor feel the full force of the law, yet the wealthy can use that wealth to not only influence the law but to hide from it as well. How many bankers have gone to jail for their part in destroying the UK economy in 2008? How many people suffering from poverty have gone to jail as a direct consequence of their actions?

I’ve been forsaken in my hour of need
forsaken due to societies greed
I have nothing left to feed my family
My cupboard and fridge are all empty
The reality of living in poverty
Each day I am getting weaker
My clothes no longer fit as i get thinner
I turn on the tv and hear I am to blame
The doctor has the cheek to tell me I’m insane
Politicians try and say that everything is alright
I now struggle getting out of bed try as i might
I can’t give up the fight for my families sake
but I don’t know how much more I can take

I’m behind on my rent so the debt mans due
I’m getting hopeless now who do i turn to?
missed my signing on date as I was sick
now I have nothing not even mortar or brick
as I lie on the floor comforted only by the cold
life starts to fade I remember what I was told
We are all in this together its a big society
guess its easy to say that when you’re high and mighty
I get it thrown in my face each day and night
they always walk on by like i’m out of sight
soon i wil be just another faceless victim
one of the many let down by this system
my eyes start to close for the very last time
I question the fault of it all could it be mine?